The United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is deepening its investigation into Twitter’s privacy and data security practices, Bloomberg News reported Tuesday, citing sources familiar with the matter. Lawyers for the FTC last month questioned two former company executives about the social media platform’s compliance with the agency’s Consent Order of 2011, the report added. The agency has asked the company if it has the resources to comply with the privacy consent decree, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters last week.
upheaval and mass layoffs Twitter since the acquisition Elon Musk have raised concerns that the social media giant might default on a May 2022 deal with US regulators in which the company agreed to improve its privacy practices. This agreement preceded the acquisition of Musk.
In a settlement in May, Twitter agreed to pay $150 million (around Rs. 1,240 million) and evaluate potential features for privacy and security issues. It also resolved allegations of misusing private information, such as phone numbers, for advertising after telling users the information was being used for security reasons.
That settlement, in turn, was prompted by allegations that the company had breached a prior consent regulation that was enacted in 2011 following two data breaches, with Twitter pledging at the time that it would not mislead users about privacy.
Mass layoffs at the company, which was bought by billionaire Elon Musk in October for $44 billion (approx.
Twitter laid off around 3,700 employees in early November as part of a new owner’s austerity measures.
The company did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment, while the FTC declined to comment.
© Thomson Reuters 2022
